Nashua skateboard fans hoping for new park

NASHUA — As the current skate park on Bridge Street is about to be demolished, there may be a light at the end of the tunnel for skateboard enthusiasts hoping to have a new skate facility in the city.

On Tuesday, the Board of Aldermen was presented with a proposed resolution that would appropriate $270,000 into a new trust fund designed to help relocate the skate park.

Although the future site of the new skate park has not yet been determined, Alderman-at-Large David Deane hopes his fellow aldermen will approve the funds, which would cover a portion of the costs to relocate the park.

Previously, an online petition was created with more than 1,270 signatures from individuals seeking to have a new park built before the David W. Deane Skateboard Park is razed to make way for a major development project on Bridge Street.

Deane has formed a committee that is searching for a new home for the skate park, and several local skating professionals are active with the group.

The David W. Deane Skateboard Park was built in 2000 for about $120,000, and is popular throughout New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

However, the city previously contracted with Renaissance Downtowns to develop the 26-acre parcel where the park is housed on Bridge Street. The group is expected to break ground in the fall on a major housing and retail development project that includes a waterfront promenade near the Nashua and Merrimack rivers.

Plans for the Bridge Street development project have already been drafted and approved by the Nashua City Planning Board.

Deane said Tuesday that his committee is working hard to ensure a future skate park will be built, but it could take some time to make sure it is done correctly.“We have met with a contractor and we are still looking at the design for the new park,” said Deane, adding die-hard skateboarders will be providing their insight on the plans.The total price-tag, however, has yet to be determined, explained Deane. But the $270,000, if approved, would at least cover a portion of the cost to relocate the facility, he added.

Earl Verrier, manager at Eastern Border in Nashua, sits on the new skate park committee, which will next meet at 7 p.m. Thursday at Nashua City Hall. He said previously that a handful of potential sites have already been considered, and more are being floated.“We are still not clear on the funding and how much money will be available, but I am very optimistic that the new park is going to be great,” Verrier said earlier. “A lot of people were definitely disappointed when news broke out about this, and everybody wants to know where we stand. There is a lot of support out there.”

The existing outdoor skate park on the eastern side of Nashua is free to skating enthusiasts, and includes an 11-feet deep traditional bowl that is vertical all the way around, along with a street course, ledges, rails, grind bars and fun box.